What is a cleft palate? Full and partial

A cleft palate is a congenital defect that is a splitting of the tissues of the hard and soft palate, in which the oral and nasal cavities are connected. Due to the violation of the integrity of both cavities, children experience difficulty breathing and eating, gain weight poorly, and are delayed in physical development . However, when proper treatment illness and literacy surgical correction , the child will live full life

and no different from their peers.

To make it easier to understand what it is, it is necessary to understand the peculiarities of the structure and development of the human palate. The upper palate separates the oral and nasal cavity

and consists of two parts: the hard palate (located in the front of the oral cavity, formed by a bone base) and the soft palate located behind it (consists of muscles and glands). The muscles of the soft palate are involved in pronouncing sounds and eating food, and its tissues prevent food from entering the nose and nasopharynx when swallowing. Formation upper jaw

the fetus begins from the eighth week after conception. It is during this period that a genetic failure can lead to the development of a pathology called cleft palate. The pathology is formed as a result of the slow fusion of fragments of the upper jaw with the vomer (so-called azygos bone

facial part of the skull). 0.1% of newborns worldwide are born with this disorder.

In Russia, one in 600–700 babies has a birth defect, and statistics are increasing every year. Meet different degrees

• illness:
• Incomplete - the cleft is located in the lower part of the lip and does not affect the upper part;
• Complete – the split reaches the nose area; Hidden - the pathology affects only the muscles, and skin

remain intact. Pathology can be identified using ultrasound examination at 12–16 weeks of pregnancy.

An abortion can be done at this stage if the fetus also has other pathologies. In rare cases, diagnosis by ultrasound is not possible and the anomaly becomes known only after the child is born. A little less common is another pathology called this physiological deviation, which looks like a narrow hole in the.

upper lip

Causes Why does this happen? The likelihood of having a baby with a cleft palate increases if future mom during pregnancy:

• Uses alcohol or drugs;
• Smokes;
• Takes medications that have contraindications during pregnancy;
• Lives in an unfavorable ecological environment;
• Has problems with excess weight;
• Over 35 years old;
• Lacks folic acid in organism;
• Already has a child with a similar pathology.

The causes of the pathology can be:

• Poor nutrition;
• Severe stress;
• Impact on the fetus from the outside (blow to the stomach);
• Viral and infectious diseases (, and others);
• Uterine fibroids;
• Weak activity of germ cells in parents.

Why is it dangerous?

A child with a cleft palate is in danger already during the birth process. Amniotic fluid can penetrate through the holes into Airways and cause suffocation.

A congenital anomaly can cause following problems:

• Damage to the soft tissues of the palate complicates sound production, this leads to;
• When breathing, the air does not have time to warm up enough, and when it enters the lungs, it can cause. If the cleft is of significant size, then part of the air, not reaching the lungs, comes out through the mouth or nose. Chronic lack of oxygen negatively affects the brain and intelligence;
• During sucking, fluid can enter the ears through the sinuses, causing otitis media and hearing problems. Flaw necessary substances during feeding slows down physical development;
• If the cleft is complete and reaches the tooth line, a malocclusion. Dental problems may arise. Poor chewing solid food leads to disruption of the gastrointestinal tract.
• Cleft palate in children makes social adaptation difficult. Children with pathology suffer from complexes and are embarrassed to communicate with peers.

Feeding a child with a cleft palate also has a number of features:

• At breastfeeding use special nipple covers to cover the cleft in the palate;
• For children on artificial feeding There are specialized soft bottles that can be used to control the speed of food supply. In addition, the bottles are equipped with special nipples bigger size than usual - this prevents food from entering the respiratory tract;
• For older children with a defect, the gap is closed with an obturator (an overlay that imitates the palate).

Treatment and operations

Treatment of cleft palate is carried out only surgically, but treatment involves specialists from various fields: surgery, pediatrics, orthodontics, speech therapy, neurology, otolaryngology.

The operation has from 2 to 7 or even more stages. Surgery is recommended to begin at eight months of age. Up to this point, the oral cavity has too small size, and carry out only maintenance therapy.

Several methods are used in the treatment of cleft palate. surgical technicians. On examination, based on individual characteristics patient, the doctor determines which technique or combination of techniques should be used.

People born with the anomaly almost always have damaged facial muscles. The surgeon’s task is not only to recreate the integrity of the integument between the nasal and oral cavities, but also to give the muscles correct position to normalize their functioning.

Veloplasty

Veloplasty is the first step in a series of surgical procedures to eliminate a cleft of the soft palate.

The doctor makes large incisions in the mucosa and sutures the muscles, thus forming a velopharyngeal valve that protects the upper respiratory tract from food entering it when swallowing. Correct breathing and sound production are restored.

Uranoplasty

Allows you to remove the cleft of the hard palate and lengthen the soft palate - this is a complex and lengthy stage. To close the gap, fragments of the periosteum are taken along with the vessels and moved to the site of the defect. Over time, its own bone tissue forms in this place.

Children under one and a half to two years of age are not recommended to undergo uranoplasty, as this can cause a delay in the formation of the bones of the upper jaw.

If there are indications, the operation may be postponed until a later age, up to 4 years.

One-stage plastic surgery

The operation is performed only if the child has a narrow or incomplete cleft. As a result, the palate defect is closed by the tissues of the oral and nasal cavities by displacing them.

This operation is not enough to eliminate all problems, but it will become easier to care for and feed the child. In addition, the risk of developing otitis media and sinusitis will decrease. The operation helps create conditions for the growth of bone structures, due to which the cleft is significantly reduced in a short period of time. Cheiloplasty Cheiloplasty is used in cases where a child has both a cleft palate and a cleft lip.

There is a high risk of incorrect tissue matching, which can lead to an unesthetic appearance after the scars have healed. However, it is also impossible to delay the operation; the correct development of the maxillofacial system depends on it.

Complications

Complications after surgery most often occur due to medical error. Sometimes observed:

• Dehiscence of the wound at the junction of hard and soft tissues. In this case, repeated surgery is required;
• Fragments of tissue transferred from other areas may die;
• Formation of rough scars;
• Shortening the soft palate can affect speech development.

Rehabilitation and care

All surgical interventions are performed under general anesthesia. Before the operation, the child undergoes a course, and afterward painkillers are added to them. If there are no complications, the patient is discharged after 3–4 weeks.

• For the first 2–3 days, the patient is prescribed bed rest.
• First week on postoperative wounds apply bandages with a disinfectant. Once the stitches are removed, no bandage is needed.
• Food should only be consumed in pureed form. Drinking plenty of fluids is recommended.
• To prevent inflammation, after each meal, the patient needs to rinse his mouth weak solution potassium permanganate.
• Starting from the second week, the doctor prescribes soft massage palate, this accelerates the process of tissue regeneration.

The minimum interval between operations must be one year. In 98% of cases, by surgical intervention, is achieved complete elimination defect and restoration of the integrity of the palate.

Cleft lip and cleft palate- these are quite common. With a cleft lip (another name is cleft lip, cheiloschisis), the child's upper lip is not fully formed and there is a cleft in it, which often reaches the nose, exposing the front teeth (thus making the child look like a hare - hence the name). A cleft palate (cleft palate) is a defect in which the child’s palate does not fully fuse and there is a cleft in it.

On average, about 6,800 babies are born each year with these birth defects. Among them, about 4,200 children have both a cleft palate and a cleft lip at the same time, and 2,600 children have an isolated cleft palate.

Some children with cleft lips have only a small cleft in the upper lip, while others have a deep gap that exposes the upper gums and reaches the bottom of the nose. A cleft lip can occur on one side (unilateral cheiloschisis) or on both sides (bilateral cheiloschisis) of the child’s mouth.

A cleft palate can affect the soft palate ( soft cloth in the back of the palate) or on the hard palate (the bone tissue of the front of the palate). The cleft palate can also be unilateral or bilateral.

These oral defects, in addition to psychological ones, can cause the following problems in a child:

• feeding problems;
• ear infections and hearing loss;
• speech problems;
• dental problems.

Some children only have a cleft lip, some only have a cleft palate. In such cases, these defects are considered isolated. But in most cases, these defects occur together, that is, the child simultaneously has both a cleft palate and a cleft lip.

Causes of Birth Defects

Birth defects form at the very beginning of pregnancy, when all the fetal organs are forming. So, for example, the baby’s lips are formed around the 6th week of pregnancy, and the palate is formed.

It is impossible to say exactly what causes such defects in a child, but there are a number of main reasons that can lead to this:

1. Gene abnormalities in a child – genes are part of the cells of the child’s body that are responsible for the formation, growth and functioning of all the baby’s organs. If there are any anomalies in them, then disruptions occur in the child’s intrauterine development. Genes are passed on to children from their parents.

2. in a woman's body before pregnancy, folic acid (vitamin B9) is the only vitamin that can help protect your baby from birth defects of the brain and spinal cord, in particular (so-called neural tube defects). Taking folic acid reduces the risk of lip and palate defects by 25%.

3. Taking certain medications , such as anticonvulsants, during pregnancy.

4. Smoking during pregnancy – smoking causes oral defects in 20% of cases, that is, among 5 smoking women one will have a child with cleft lip and/or cleft palate.

5. Alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

6. Past infections during pregnancy.

Prevention of cleft lip and cleft palate in children

Of course, it is practically impossible to prevent birth defects in a child. But there are some things an expectant mother can do to reduce the chance of having a baby with a cleft lip or palate:

1. Prepare thoroughly for conceiving a child, go through a complete medical examination to make sure you are healthy before you become pregnant.

2. Even before pregnancy, start taking vitamins with folic acid (400 mcg) daily. During pregnancy, you should choose a prenatal multivitamin with 600 mcg of folic acid.

3. If a woman is taking any medications (for example, for treatment chronic diseases, such as diabetes), she should discuss with her doctor the safety of these medications for fetal development, and (if possible) reduce the dosage of the medications. Your doctor may recommend changing your medication to another medicine that is safer during pregnancy.

4. Don't smoke, don't drink alcoholic drinks, don't take drugs.

5. Register with a gynecologist as soon as possible antenatal clinic, regularly visit your doctor and follow all his recommendations and take all necessary tests.

Treatment of birth defects

In most cases, birth defects of the oral cavity can be treated surgically. In particular, surgery to eliminate a cleft lip is usually performed between 10 and 12 weeks of a child’s life. Surgery cleft palate is usually performed between the 9th and 18th month of life.

In addition to surgery, the child will need to undergo treatment from a group of the following specialists:

1. A pediatrician is a doctor who has special training in caring for infants and children.
2. A plastic surgeon is a doctor who not only eliminates cosmetic defects, but also watches them postoperative healing and functioning.
3. A pediatric dentist is a dentist who has special training to care for the teeth of infants and children.
4. An orthodontist is a dentist who eliminates dental defects and straightens teeth using braces and other methods.
5. An otolaryngologist (ENT) is a doctor who treats problems with the ears, nose and throat, conducts hearing tests and, if necessary, selects a hearing aid.
6. A speech therapist is a person who specializes in eliminating speech problems.
7. A geneticist is a doctor who studies birth defects and other genetic health problems based on family history.

Hereditary transmission of birth defects

It has been proven that congenital oral defects can be inherited. If you have family members with cleft lip or palate, your risk of having a child with such problems increases significantly.

If your family has had children born with cleft lip and cleft palate, or if you already have a child with such defects, then before you become pregnant again, you need to consult with a geneticist to find out what the likelihood of having another child with oral defects is. Typically, this probability is about 5%.

In the vast majority of cases, the reason for the birth of a child with a cleft palate lies within the framework hereditary predisposition. A significant factor that can trigger the occurrence of this birth defect is the presence bad habits during pregnancy (alcohol, smoking), sometimes this pathology can lead to late pregnancy. The defect occurs in the first two months of bearing a baby, this is the period of development of the maxillofacial organs.

So that's it causal factors, which contribute to the emergence of such anatomical abnormality, can be classified as follows.

• Genetics. Currently, there is no exact solution to the issue of the nuances of the formation of the anatomy of the jaw and face. But according to statistics, we can conclude that on average, a person born with this diagnosis has a chance of passing this congenital structural defect to his child about 7 percent.
• The defect is accompanied by the presence of a more serious pathology. Some complex illnesses are often included in the nuances of the standard clinical picture variants of cleft lip and/or palate, for example: Stickler syndrome, Van der Woude syndrome.
• Environmental influence in the prenatal period: development of a state of oxygen deficiency in the 1st trimester of pregnancy (including maternal smoking, drinking alcohol, and the use of certain medications for arterial hypertension). Also, the danger of this pathology can provoke the exposure of the mother’s body to influences, not healthy diet, anticonvulsants medicines, sodium compounds, influence of lead.

The main reasons for the birth of babies with cleft palate are external factors, which affect the pregnant woman’s body at the very beginning of this condition. These include:

• chemical exposure (22.8 percent),
• mental and mechanical influence(9 percent),
• getting injured (6 percent),
• biological (5 percent) and physical (2 percent) effects.

Symptoms

The symptoms of this disease are closely related to its form. In most cases, the signs are quite serious and pose a real problem for babies and their parents. A cleft palate can manifest itself as follows:

• The soft palate does not overgrow.
• The soft and partially hard palate does not overgrow.
• The soft and hard palates are not completely overgrown on one side.
• The soft and hard palates on both sides do not completely overgrow.

Common symptoms of this defect are

• the child cannot make sucking movements due to a closed palate;
• the baby refuses to eat because the milk penetrates into the nasal cavity, which causes an unpleasant feeling;
• The baby is delayed in physical development due to insufficient nutrition.

Diagnosis of cleft palate in newborns

Diagnosing this defect in a child is quite simple and is done immediately after birth.

• Doctor examines oral cavity newborn, where the palate is noticeably cleft.
• A medical history is taken of the mother of such a child, and the doctor studies the history of her pregnancy.
• The hereditary factor and the presence of a similar defect in one of the baby’s relatives are taken into account.
• The fact of cleft palate in a baby who has not yet been born can be detected through an ultrasound, but only on later gestation at 6-7 months of pregnancy.
• May need professional help pediatric surgeon, Laura.

Complications

The main problem in children with cleft palate concerns the way they are fed and difficulties with nasal breathing.

Over time, if this problem is not solved surgically, the child will develop:

• speech disorders,
• inflammatory processes of the paranasal sinuses,
• inflammation of the eustachian tube,
• problems with adaptation in a team.

Treatment

What can you do

If you had a baby with this defect, first of all, do not despair. Today, the so-called cleft lip or cleft palate can be successfully treated surgically, and over time, in most cases, no one will even guess from the child that he was born with such a defect. There is no other treatment.

It is necessary to listen to the doctor’s recommendations regarding the baby’s nutritional habits, as well as wait and prepare for surgery. Usually several operations are required, but they will allow the baby to live a full life, indistinguishable from the life of his peers.

The main difficulty for a mother in the preoperative period is to establish the best way When feeding a child with this diagnosis, there are a number of practices and recommendations that will definitely help you adapt to the situation.

What does a doctor do

Surgical treatment is the only way to eliminate this defect in an infant.

Surgical therapy is carried out in several stages according to a specific scheme developed by the doctor. It is advisable to eliminate this problem before the child reaches three years that this defect did not affect the baby’s speech and self-esteem.

After surgery, sessions with a speech therapist may be necessary.

Prevention

Since this congenital defect is caused by a hereditary factor, special preventive measures not provided. We can only advise you to take multivitamins, healthy image life, avoid infectious diseases during the period of bearing a baby.

Diseases “cleft lip” and “cleft palate” are among the most common congenital pathologies, which disfigure the face and cause many problems: speech therapy, dental, otorhinolaryngological, etc. Often mothers of newborns are frightened when they are informed about the child’s illness, believing that this deformity is forever. But modern plastic surgery has made a lot of progress last years forward in eliminating these seemingly fatal phenomena.

Features of diseases

"Cleft palate" and "cleft lip" represent birth defects areas of the face and mouth. These deviations are formed in the mother’s womb, during the initial period of pregnancy. Deformations appear as a result of an unsatisfactory amount of tissue in the mouth and lips. In this case, the existing fibers are spliced ​​incorrectly, giving the face specific, not very attractive features.

Many people who are not intimately familiar with these deformities often confuse them and consider them to be one and the same disease, calling it “ cleft lip" However, these pathologies differ significantly from each other.

Cleft lip deformity

Congenital pathology “cleft lip” is a cleft on each side of the upper lip. It is determined physiological abnormalities. The defect occurs in the form of a narrow hole or gap in the skin. The cleft can not only be located on the upper lip, but also fill the nasal area and can affect bone tissue jaw and upper gums.

Pathology "cleft palate"

This deviation represents holes or clefts in the hard or soft palate. Unfortunately, such a defect in the oral part of the face is observed quite often. Statistics of this pathology: There is one case of such an anomaly per thousand newborn babies. Often the deviation is accompanied by a “cleft lip”.

Currently, scientists have discovered three genes that, when mutated, contribute to the occurrence of this disease in humans. Currently, research in this area continues to be carried out.

When it comes to cleft palate development, then the splitting of the hard and soft palate can be complete or incomplete, that is, it can represent one large or several minor holes. This pathology very often occurs along with a bifurcation of the uvula, which is located at the back of the soft palate, almost in the nasopharynx.

This accompanying pathology the defect occurs due to the unnatural connection of the medial and lateral processes with the nasal septum.

It is this disease, according to statistics, that turns out to be one of the most frequently observed abnormalities in babies, which begins to form already in the womb and which is very difficult to predict or diagnose in advance - that is, before conception. Which means, unfortunately, it cannot be prevented. However, after the baby is born, modern plastic surgeons are quite capable of helping him.

The reason for the development of pathology

The formation of such a pathology explained by a genetic predisposition to this kind diseases. Often such deviations in the process of fetal development occur in a mother who has addictions:

• consumption of alcoholic beverages;
• passion for intoxicants and drugs;
• smoking.

In addition, the cause of the baby’s illness can be acute shortage in the mother's body of folic acid. The disadvantage of this element is due to in the wrong way the life of a pregnant woman, a careless attitude towards her position, an incorrect and irregular diet, obesity, and so on.

The listed reasons influence the development of pathology in the lower part of the future baby’s face, including in the area of ​​the upper jaw.

This pathology can also be caused by unfavorable environment , in which was expectant mother, acute infectious or toxicological diseases and even mental trauma.

All of the above reasons can cause a failure in the internal thin and complex system life support in the mother's womb and lead to developmental defects of the baby.

Consequences of deformation

This pathology in children causes great difficulties and discomfort literally from the first day of their birth.

Consequences of the disease affect literally all areas of the life of the child and his family:

All these inconveniences and deviations in the normal functioning of the whole organism most often lead to the fact that children with such pathologies have an insufficient quality of life, and often, if the problem was not resolved in a timely manner, they feel inferior, have low self-esteem and, as a result, often There are asocial, aggressive, unsuccessful people.

Symptomatic manifestations

Children who have this pathology, due to a disrupted natural process, they face the following difficulties:

• incorrect pronunciation and formation of sounds:
• difficulties in mastering the job speech apparatus generally,
• development of rhinolalia.

Rhinolalia is characterized by a change in the timbre of the voice and the nature of the pronunciation of sounds. This occurs due to improper closure of the pharynx and palate.

On top of this, inhaled air can carry food and drinks into the nose and back through the nose and into the mouth. Fluid can also enter the Eustachian tube, which sometimes causes otitis media and sinusitis. In addition, in this case, deformation of the bite and teeth occurs, which disrupts the process of chewing food.

Medical care for cleft palate

The pathology of cleft palate in children can be corrected with virtually no consequences, if parents promptly contact the appropriate specialists. The success of treatment in most cases depends not only and not so much on doctors, but on the perseverance, patience and perseverance of those who care for the baby. To achieve success, you should strictly adhere to all the advice and recommendations of your doctor. It is also necessary to show the child to a regular or plastic surgeon so that he can assess the severity of the pathology and draw up a plan for the upcoming correction.

Disease detection

Pathology can be detected in advance, already at the 14th–15th week of pregnancy during screening. However, it is impossible to fully assess the shape and volume of the lesion. These subtleties can only be seen after the baby is born. The diagnosis of cleft palate is made immediately after the birth of the child. The extent and depth of the lesion is determined by examination of the newborn.

If a specialist discovers the presence of a cleft in the fetus in the womb characteristic of the disease, then the mother has additional time to prepare for future therapy. Firstly, it will be necessary additional methods research. Secondly, you need to be prepared to visit specialists responsible for areas of cranial development, breathing, and disorders of smell and hearing.

Correction methods

Treatment of this pathology can only be done surgically. Be sure to carry out several preliminary cosmetic surgeries. First, uranoplasty is performed, during which the soft palate is lengthened, and its muscle connects in the right direction and then tapers middle section throats.

If the operation was performed in infancy, then the process of feeding the newborn in the usual way after surgery is almost impossible - children develop severe pain, there is a likely risk of rough scars and slow healing of the wound. Therefore, you will need to first teach your child to eat using a special feeding spoon.

With incomplete cleft palate and correct form teeth In the upper jaw, uranoplasty is recommended starting from two years of age. If there is a violation of the integrity of the process of the alveoli, as well as a narrowing of the upper jaw, then first treatment must be carried out by an orthodontist. In this case, uranoplasty should be carried out no earlier than 4-6 years.

In rare cases, the palate is formed in the form of bilateral depressions, which are accompanied by tissue defects. In this case, it is first recommended to perform plastic surgery hard and soft palate, in order to narrow the middle body of the pharynx to the required size. Six months later, an operation is performed to close the cleft of the hard palate, its anterior part, as well as the process of the alveoli. Simultaneously with the same operation, bone tissue grafting is also performed.

Caring for a child with a cleft palate

The baby will require special care, since the pathology entails a number of problems that complicate his life.

Difficulty eating

With a hole in the sky food and liquid can pass through the nose back into the mouth. To avoid this, use specially designed dishes. Sometimes babies are temporarily fitted with an artificial palate. It is used before surgery to make it easier for the baby to eat.

Deafness and ear infections

Patients tend to develop and accumulate fluid in the middle ear. Because of this, they often develop diseases. hearing aid, sometimes babies are completely deprived of the ability to hear. To prevent such complications, eardrums install special tubes for fluid drainage. An examination of the level and quality of hearing in children with pathology must be carried out at least once or twice a year.

Speech problems

With such a diagnosis the speaker's voice often sounds ugly and unintelligible, with an uncharacteristic for the usual oral speech deep sound, which greatly complicates the communication of such children not only with peers, but also with adults. It also contributes to the development of an inferiority complex and low self-esteem. This problem can be prevented by surgery before the onset of active socialization of the child and in the future seek help from a speech therapist.

Dental defects

Cleft lip and palate contribute to the formation of caries on teeth, as well as their displacement or curvature. Such deviations also interfere with the correct development of the speech apparatus in children with similar pathologies and production of competent speech.

All these difficulties can be corrected through the intervention of appropriate specialists: a surgeon, an orthodontist, a dentist, a speech therapist and a psychologist.

According to statistics with a cleft palate 0.1% of children worldwide are born.

The defect causes the child certain problems associated with breathing and food absorption.

We will talk about the causes and methods of treating cleft palate in children in the article.

How to treat port-wine stain on the face of newborns? Find out about this from ours.

Description and characteristics

Cleft palate in children - photo:

Cleft palate - what is it and how is it different from a cleft lip? The cleft palate is a congenital deformation of the formation of the maxillofacial muscles, in which separation of the soft and hard palate.

This phenomenon is formed during the slowdown in the fusion of the upper jaw with the bone of the facial region. in the first two months of gestation. Deformation leads to disruption of the processes of nutrition, breathing and speech.

Cleft lip is also a congenital defect in which non-fusion of the upper jaw and nasopharynx. It is two to three times less common than cleft palate and is characterized by greater inconspicuousness - with unilateral clefting, the cleft lip looks like a minor defect.

In addition, cleft palate is a more serious health and functioning problem than cleft lip.

Causes of the defect and development factors

Many experts argue that the cause of the defect is not one factor, but several. There are certain factors that increase the risk of developing cleft palate in the fetus:

Causes of the defect:

• poor nutrition;
• mechanical damage to the fetus (blows to the abdomen, operations in the lower abdomen);
• psychological disorders, stress;
• poisoning chemicals(hair dye, pesticides, arsenic, etc.);
• exacerbation of infectious and viral diseases(measles, herpes, rubella, malaria and others);
• taking certain medications;
• attempt to provoke a miscarriage;
• uterine fibroids;
• exposure to radiation from x-rays or ultrasound;
• insufficient activity of germ cells of one or both parents.

Despite a large number of possible reasons development of the defect, in 20-30% of cases the source remains unknown.

According to statistics about 20% of cases are provoked by chemical poisoning, 8-10% by stress and psychological disorders, 5-7% -mechanical damage fetus, 4-6% - exacerbation of diseases, 2-3% - physical impact for the baby.

What is the causative agent of vesiculopustulosis in infants? find out right now.

Classification of forms of pathology

The cleft palate has several forms of development:

• hidden form – cleft of the soft palate, in which the mucous surface remains intact;
• incomplete form – splitting of the soft palate and partially the hard palate;
• full shape – splitting of the soft and hard palate to the dental incisor;
• end-to-end form – splitting of the soft and hard palate and the presence alveolar process. This form has two subtypes - bilateral and unilateral.

Why is it dangerous?

Children with cleft palate are susceptible to many diseases. Due to the deformation of the palate, air enters the oral cavity, which insufficiently equipped with a humidification and warming system.

Therefore, there is a high probability of infection and cold air entering the respiratory tract and auditory organs.

Cleft palate also provokes speech impairment– due to the fact that the vibrations that give rise to speech enter not only the oral cavity, but also the nasal cavity, speech becomes a little nasal.

Often food gets into the auditory organs, causing inflammation of the ear.

Due to otitis media, the patient may will be completely deaf. Liquid that enters the nasal cavity leads to the development of chronic sinusitis.

Due to improper formation of the jaw, the child develops serious problems with the process of sucking and, later, chewing food. This deficiency leads to the development of pathologies internal organs. Deformation of teeth often causes the formation of caries.

We should also not forget how the cleft palate affects social adaptation of the child. Because of its excellent appearance children, especially girls, experience embarrassment, anger, anxiety and low self-esteem. Children become aggressive and withdrawn, making many mistakes in communicating with their peers.

Forecast

Cure can be predicted a few weeks after surgery - when the swelling goes down. In the second or third month, the scar on the face will decrease significantly.

Children who have had cleft palate correction surgery may subsequently be active social life, study in a regular school and play sports.

The full course of recovery may take a couple of years, but after this period only a light scar will remain from the defect, which can be eliminated with a laser.

Cleft palate in a child is not the most terrible disease, although it is shocking. This defect can and must be combated to give the child a chance to normal life on a par with peers.

Watch the program about surgical correction defect:

We kindly ask you not to self-medicate. Make an appointment with a doctor!